Infinite Jest Quote #2

The adventures in DFW's Infinite Jest continue... Now there's a bizarre mountain-top meeting between Marathe (of Assassins des Fauteuils Rollents) and Steepley (Bureau des Services sans Spécifité). At some point Marathe says:

"We have, as one will say, larger seafood to cook." (p. 91)

Disclaimer: Putting up the more LCDish humor from Infinite Jest almost betrays the spirit of the work, which is anything but blatant and cheap. The entire work is hysterical, but in general the humor is far more subtle/indirect than the two quotations above and below. Having said that, it's really a screwball comedy.

Infinite Jest Word List #2

1. Phylactery: (From OED) 'b. The fringe which Israelites were commanded to wear as a reminder of the obligation to keep the law. c.) A reminder, a religious observation or profession of faith.'
2. Cardioid: A curve somewhat resembling a heart-shape. Exhibit A.
3. Pargeted: Covered or decorated with plaster or parget
4. Quo vadis: Where are you doing? / Whither goest thou?
5. Kismet: Destiny, fate.  < Turkish kismet, Persian qismat, < Arabic qisma(t) portion, lot, fate, < qasama to divide.
6. Apocope: The cutting off or omission of the last letter or syllable of a word.
7. Comme-il-faut: Being in accord with conventions or accepted standards, proper. "As it's done."
8. Sui testator: Testator is essentially "any person who makes a will." "Self-willer"? (!)
9. Festschrift: A volume of writing by many authors as a tribute to a scholar, for example, on the occasion of retirement of a colleague. [From German Festschrift, from Fest (celebration) + Schrift (writing). Ultimately from Indo-European root skribh- (to cut, separate, or sift) that has resulted in other terms, such as manuscript, subscribe, scripture, scribble, and describe.]
10. Dentate: Having 'teeth' or tooth-like projections along the edge; toothed. Think a comb.
11. Leptosomatic (alt.: Leptosomic) A type of physique characterized by leanness / tallness.
12. Plosivity (?) Quality of being plosive (as in a type of consonant).

Infinite Jest Quote #1

"I'll say God seems to have a kind of laid-back management style I'm not crazy about." (p. 40) 

Faith crisis, Office Space style.

Infinite Jest Word List #1

I've decided to jump into DFW's Infinite Jest in a desperate bid to destroy any academic potential I may still possess.

Also, was thoroughly engrossed in Little Expressionless Animals (by same)  website when halted by the Paris Review's infuriating "To read the rest of this piece, purchase this issue..." cheapshot.

Wordlist #1:

1. Hirsute: Having rough or shaggy hair; shaggy. Covered with long/stiffish hairs. Of or pertaining to hair; of the nature of or consisting of hair.  Rough, shaggy, untrimmed. 2) (Of manners, style)  unpolished.  Derivatives: Hirsutism: An abnormal degree of hairiness (esp. or solely in women).
2. Presbyopic: Deterioration of near vision occurring with advancing age, owing to increasing rigidity of the lens of the eye with reduction in the power of accommodation.
3. Amanuensis: One who copies or writes from the dictation of another.
4. Anfractious: [obs.] Sinuous or circuitous. From anfract: A winding, circuitous route; a sinuosity.

Links

Chinese Painting Techniques for Exquisite Watercolors
The Chinese Brush Painting Bible

Japanese Illustrated Books (Met Museum)
Xu Beihong Eagles
Thomas Nagel's "What Is It Like to Be a Bat?"

Went down an interesting historico-linguistic rabbit hole today after discovering a proposed etymology for the 'Vandals' (of Sack-of-Rome fame). Basically: Aurvandil is the Old Norse equivalent to Old English Earendel, a name which occurs in the OE poem Crist I and which J.R.R. Tolkien borrowed. In the Crist I context, Earendel is understood to imply John the Baptist. Both Aurvandil and Earendel theoretically developed from a (proposed) Proto-Germanic compound 'auzi-wandilaz' (i.e., luminous wanderer) and are associated with the Morning-star (Morningstar > harbinger > John the Baptist).

Also: Number of English translations of various Medieval works available at In Parentheses Publications. Can't find much information regarding them. Fun to look through, though.

Shakespeare on value systems

'Degree' speech from Troilus and Cressida:

109: Take but degree away, untune that string,
110: And hark what discord follows. Each thing [meets]
111: In mere oppugnancy: the bounded waters
112: Should lift their bosoms higher than the shores,
113: And make a sop of all this solid globe;
114: Strength should be lord of imbecility,
115: And the rude son should strike his father dead;
116: Force should be right, or rather, right and wrong
117: (Between whose endless jar justice resides)
118: Should lose their names, and so should justice too!
119: Then every thing include itself in power,
120: Power into will, will into appetite,
121: And appetite, an universal wolf
122: (So doubly seconded with will and power),
123: Must make per force an universal prey,
124: And last eat up himself.